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Panasonic has released its August 2023 lens roadmap for the Pansonic Lumix S series interchangeable lenses for L mount cameras. While they are Panasonic lenses, they will of course work on Leica and Sigma cameras as well.
No specific focal lengths have been provided for the lenses, although the prime lens is quite obvious. The Zoom lenses give a reasonable enough range to make a good guess, too. We can also probably guess other specs, too.
In an interview with Yosuke Yamane, Panasonic’s Imaging and Business division director, Phototrend confirmed that Panasonic plans to implement phase detection autofocus into the Micro Four Thirds product line. According to Yamane, Panasonic now has “all the AF technologies” and will choose “the optimal autofocus method each time”.
This suggests that it may not be available on all future Micro Four Thirds cameras. There’s no word yet on exactly which bodies it will come to, though. PDAF was notably lacking from the Panasonic GH6, but I think it’s probably a safe bet to say that it will almost certainly be coming to the hypothetical Panasonic GH7 and whatever Panasonic eventually releases to replace the Panasonic Lumix G9.
Panasonic has updated its full-frame L mount Lumix lens roadmap for 2023 by adding two new lenses. One new prime lense has been added at the 100mm (or 105mm) mark with a zoom around the 28-200mm range. The two lenses clearly full up some gaps in the Lumix L mount lineup, but when we’ll see them is currently unknown.
The prime lens sits around the 100mm mark, but potentially 105mm. Whether or not it’ll be a macro lens, like the Canon 100mm f/2.8 or Nikon 105mm f/2.8 is unknown. It might be more akin to the Nikon 105mm f/1.4 (or Sigma’s 105mm f/1.4) than an f/2.8 macro. The zoom looks like a potentially good walkabout lens, as an alternative to the Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 Macro OIS but with a bit more range.
Is Panasonic finally going to give us phase detection autofocus (PDAF) in their full-frame and Micro Four Thirds Lumix mirrorless cameras? Well… Maybe. This is one that seems to have skipped by most of us but last month, Panasonic announced a new PTZ camera. Now, we do cover PTZ cameras occasionally, like the Insta360 Link and that crazy Sony Cinema PTZ camera we saw at IBC 2022 in September, but mostly they’re kinda boring.
This one, though, the imaginatively titled Panasonic AW-UE160W/K features something new. At least, it’s something new for Panasonic. Phase detection autofocus. Ordinary Filmmaker spotted this and put a video together going over his thoughts on what this might mean for the future of Panasonic mirrorless cameras.
Panasonic Japan has officially killed off the Lumix LX100 II. Released in 2018, this follow-up to the popular LX100 stood out amongst the compact camera competition by having the same large 20.3-megapixel Micro Four Thirds sensor as the Panasonic Lumix GX9. Capable of shooting 4K UHD video, with a built-in 24-75mm equivalent f/1.7-2.8 lens, the LX100 II also proved to be quite popular. But now its time has come to an end.
And it looks like this might be an end to the LX100 line completely as Panasonic turns away from compact cameras. In April of this year, Panasonic was reported to be ditching “low-end models” to set their sights on professional photographers and filmmakers with higher-end kit in the interchangeable lens mirrorless market.
It’s always a bit of a dilemma when you’re travelling regarding what to pack. Somehow all life choices become distilled into the weight of your bag and whether you should put lithium-ion batteries in the hold or in your carry-on (they go in the carry-on), whether to bring prime lenses (lighter!) or zooms (only need 1!), and whether you really need to bring a second camera body or would the space be better taken up with additional snacks (always choose the snacks!).
But maybe just maybe we are overthinking it, and the best travel camera might not be the ‘best’ camera for your normal day-to-day life or photography. It also doesn’t have to be the most expensive or have all the latest technological advances. In this video, James Popsys is risking life and limb when he leaves his sleeping wife and baby on their honeymoon to go and take some early morning photos in a beautiful Tuscan village, using a camera that cost him just $60.
Panasonic has announced its new Lumix S 35mm F1.8 (S-S35) lens for L mount bodies, which includes Panasonic’s own S series cameras, as well as L mount bodies from Leica and Sigma’s fp and fp L cameras. It’s the fourth lens in Panasonic’s Lumix f/1.8 primes range, adding to the 24mm, 50mm and 85mm lenses in the lineup.
It comes with a dust, splash and freeze-resistant design and Panasonic says that it’s an ideal lens for both photos and video in terms of both noise and focus performance. It also provides smooth aperture changes for when you need to shoot video in shutter priority.
It’s the 20th anniversary of Panasonic’s Lumix brand of cameras this year. Today, in fact, is the 20th anniversary of their first cameras, the Lumix LC5 and F7. Lumix has come a long way in that time, and many have been expecting a Panasonic GH6 announcement today. According to a statement from Panasonic Japan, though, it’s still in development.
Panasonic has launched a Lumix 20th anniversary website to celebrate the event, talking about not only the Lumix brand but Panasonic’s history with photography, which extends far beyond the last 20 years. It includes a number of innovations invented by Panasonic, like the world’s first optical image stabilisation system.
The Panasonic GH5 Mark II is expected to see similar autofocus performance to Panasonic’s full-frame S series mirrorless cameras. This is welcome news to Panasonic Micro Four Thirds users frustrated with the GH5’s lack of autofocus performance. But to be able to take advantage of the new autofocus system, your lenses are going to need an update.
Panasonic has released a flurry of firmware updates for a dozen of their Lumix G and Leica DG lens lineup to make them compatible with the upcoming camera’s autofocus system and they’re available to download and update now for you to prepare.
After yesterday’s image leak of the upcoming Panasonic Lumix S 50mm f/1.8, a couple more have been posted to Twitter by Nokishita. An announcement is expected in the next day or two, along with pre-orders. The actual release date, they say, is set for June 25th. The price is expected to be somewhere between 54,000 and 59,400 yen (~$492-542).
Udi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.
Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe
Dave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.
John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.
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